Players, Chapter Four: Do Not Pass Go
"Players, Chapter Four: Do Not Pass Go" is the 24th issue of the official Young Justice spin-off comic series and the fourth chapter of a six part story. It was released on December 19, 2012. Solicitation * Batgirl takes on Match—alone! * Alpha Squad infiltrates Brainiac's ship as it hovers above Metropolis! * Superboy and the Justice League battle their captor, Kylstar! Tagline: Reflections of Danger! Synopsis At Dick's birthday party, Barbara and Artemis beat Dick and Bette at a game of foosball, with Barbara scoring the winning goal. Bruce and Alfred arrive with pizza–homemade. Dick tells Bruce that he's surprised he isn't in Dhabar, but Bruce says he wouldn't miss Dick's birthday, and that Dhabar is covered. Clark and Jimmy bump into Megan and Conner again. Megan contacts Clark telepathically, telling him that she is aware he is Superman as she can clearly see the resemblance between him and Conner, and that she doesn't like lying to Conner. Clark begins to explain that he wants to get to know him as a person rather than Superman's clone, when President Harjavti, his brother and daughter arrive on stage. Conner is concerned Queen Bee will try to take revenge against Harjavti, but Megan hopes that Queen Bee has let it go. As they speak, a masked assassin takes aim at the President. Red Tornado contacts Batman, Aquaman, Green Arrow and Black Canary to provide an update on the crises. He tells them that... ...Miss Martian and Lagoon Boy, in the Bio-Ship, are pursuing the alien ship that launched from the Moon... ...which carries Superboy, Superman, Wonder Woman, Captain Atom and Captain Marvel as prisoners... ...while Plastic Man maintains visual contact with Beta Squad's Batgirl at the edge of the force field surrounding Metropolis, while the rest of Beta watches over Noor Harjavti at Bibbo's Diner. Meanwhile, Black Lightning and Jim Harper are investigating the probe which may be generating the field, and Martian Manhunter and the Flash move to confront the other alien vessel over Metropolis. In an apartment which is decorated half as a comfortable, modern living space and half as a medieval torture chamber, Batman and Robin listen as Tornado finishes his report. Robin asks if they should head for Metropolis, but Batman reminds him there is nothing they could do there that isn't already being done; Metropolis is covered. Plastic Man shapeshifts into a message board asking Batgirl if she is okay. She responds with a holographic smiley face. Both are the surprised when a roaring Match erupts from the ground near Batgirl. The trapped heroes try once more to convince Kylstar, via Orb-One, that they do not want to go with him. He refuses to acknowledge them as sentient beings, rather viewing them as intelligently programmed weapons. The heroes smash through the floor of their cell to make their escape. Kylstar glows green, and the crystals sticking out from the upper surface of his ship begin to grow, forming a domed cover. The dome glows to provide light as ground-level crystals begin emitting air. The heroes move to find Kylstar's teleporter, but are quickly teleported back to the upper level by Kylstar. Orb-One tells them that Kylstar believes that their programming is flawed, and that he will kindly reprogram them all personally. Captain Atom begins to ask how he intends to do that, but Kylstar punches him before he can finish the question. Superboy is his next target; Conner manages to hold off one blow but is hit by the other fist. Having received no response to their hails and finding the alien ship is not protected by a force field, Martian Manhunter, Flash and their companion decide to infiltrate the ship. Manhunter density shifts through, as Flash vibrates in. They find themselves in a huge space, and are immediately addressed by the vessel's owner, standing on a nearby hovering platform. He tells them they are unwelcome aboard his ship. He introduces himself when asked, giving a long list of aliases before naming himself as the Collector of Worlds. Manhunter tries to explain their purpose, but the Collector already knows. He tells them he cannot be dissuaded from preserving one of their "doomed" planet's cities. Flash speeds to attack the alien, but is swatted aside–the Collector can think faster than Flash can move. Manhunter attempts to attack the Collector telekinetically, but the Collector is too durable to be harmed. Manhunter had hoped the distraction would be useful, but this proves not to be the case as the Collector drops a growing Atom to the floor. Lagoon Boy tells Miss Martian that he thought–or rather, dreamed–things would be different on the surface-world, but because he does not look like a pure human he must hide underwater or on the Bio-Ship. M'gann tells him she understands; she came to Earth for similar reasons. When Lagoon Boy doubts why she wouldn't fit in, M'gann reminds him she is not using her true physical form, and shifts to her white Martian form. La'gaan tells her he isn't scared, that he is the scary one. M'gann disagrees, and shifts to a feminine form similar to La'gaan. Initially thrown by the transformation, La'gaan admits he might be able to get used to it. They lean in to kiss, but are interrupted by the ship's proximity alarm; they're almost there. Kylstar continues to dominate the heroes in a physical fight, holding Wonder Woman in one hand, and tells them he is pleased with their progress. Superman and Captain Atom attack him with heat vision and energy blasts, respectively, but the energy attacks are absorbed into Kylstar's body. They reflect internally multiple times, until they are released–the heat vision from his eyes, the energy blasts from his free hand–hitting their originators. He slams Wonder Woman to the ground, and swings a fist down to hit her, but Superboy catches the blow and throws him back. Kylstar lands on his feet in a fighting stance, to Superboy's annoyance. Black Lightning helps Jim climb out of the hole made by the probe as he reports to Beta Squad; the probe is at the exact center of the force field sphere and generating something, but they were unable to move or damage it. He wants Beta to attack the probe from the inside out. Beast Boy is dubious about leaving Noor, but Bumblebee tells him the alien attack is clearly not connected to Noor. Gar reluctantly agrees they need to look at the big picture, but hopes they don't come to regret it. The pair then fly off, Beast Boy having adopted the form of a bird. Aboard the Collector's ship, the alien notes Martian Manhunter's vulnerability to heat, using it to his advantage to weaken the hero, before throwing him into a speeding Flash. Telling them he is otherwise occupied, the Collector then opens a hatch beneath the heroes, dumping them out of the ship. Alpha Squad, concealed in Zatanna's glamour bubble, enter the ship through the hatch. Nightwing reports their success to J'onn, but receives no reply as the three heroes fall towards the force field over the city. Title The title continues the reference to Monopoly in the arc. The game has a chance card that tells any player that draws it to "Go directly to jail. Do not pass Go!. Do not collect $200." This can be a double-edged sword depending on the stage of the game. In the early stages, it is unfavorable because it deprives the player of collecting more money and having the chance to purchase properties. In the late game, it is favorable because if the player remains in jail, there is no need to fear being bankrupted by landing on an expensive property controlled by a rival player. Characters |- | colspan="3" | Alfred Pennyworth |- | colspan="3" | Artemis Crock |- | colspan="3" | Barbara Gordon/Batgirl |- | colspan="3" | Bruce Wayne/Batman |- | colspan="3" | Beast Boy |- | colspan="3" | Bette Kane |- | colspan="3" | Black Lightning |- | colspan="3" | Bumblebee |- | colspan="3" | Captain Atom |- | colspan="3" | Collector of Worlds |- | colspan="3" | Captain Marvel |- | colspan="3" | Dick Grayson/Nightwing |- | colspan="3" | Flash |- | colspan="3" | Kylstar |- | colspan="3" | Lagoon Boy |- | colspan="3" | Martian Manhunter |- | colspan="3" | Miss Martian |- | colspan="3" | Orb-One |- | colspan="3" | Red Tornado |- | colspan="3" | Robin |- | colspan="3" | Superboy |- | colspan="3" | Clark Kent/Superman |- | colspan="3" | Wonder Woman |- ! colspan="3" | Non-speaking roles |- | colspan="3" | Ali |- | colspan="3" | Atom |- | colspan="3" | Bibbo Bibbowski |- | colspan="3" | Bio-Ship |- | colspan="3" | Blue Beetle |- | colspan="2" | Deadshot | |- | colspan="3" | Jim Harper |- | colspan="3" | Jimmy Olsen |- | colspan="3" | Match |- | colspan="3" | Noor Harjavti |- | colspan="3" | Plastic Man |- | colspan="3" | Rumaan Harjavti |- | colspan="2" | Sumaan Harjavti | |- | colspan="3" | Sphere |- | colspan="3" | Wonder Girl |- | colspan="3" | Zatanna |- Continuity * The events of this issue continue from the previous issue. Trivia * Number 16: Red Tornado begins his status report at 16:55 EST. He describes events in Metropolis at 16:56 EST and finishes at 16:57 EST as Batman and Robin listen in Gotham City. * The Collector of Worlds lists a number of names, which reference Brainiac's legacy in the comics: :* Vril Dox: His real name in the comics. :* Notlimenif: Spelled backwards, Milton Fine. An alias he used while on Earth. :* The Computer Tyrant of Bryak: The Computer Tyrants were the hive mind rulers of Colu, until their defeat by Vril Dox II. Bryak was Brainiac's home world in his first comic book appearance. :* The Brain of Colu: Colu was Brainiac's home world. :* The Maniac of Yod: Brain and Maniac together form the name Brainiac. "Yod" was another early name for Brainiac's home world, later retconned to be the native Coluan name. * Icon and Rocket were originally to be featured in this issue–Icon being one of Kylstar's captives, and Rocket appearing with Zatanna. Icon is featured on the solicited cover, but he is removed on the dressed cover. He is still featured on the promotional textless cover used on DC's website. Goofs * On the second timestamp for the Bio-Ship there's a definite article used for the location, while in the first one wasn't. * The solicitation indicates that "Batgirl takes on Match", but while they do meet, they didn't engage as of this issue. Cultural references * The pizza boxes have "Giordano's Pizza" on them, a reference to comic book writer, inker and editor Dick Giordano. Questions Partially answered questions * Where were Batman and Robin and what were they investigating? (Answer #1) Quotes References External links * Young Justice Issue 23 at DCComics.com * Buy a digital copy at DC Entertainment Category:A to Z Category:Comic issues Category:Comic issues penciled by Christopher Jones Category:Comic issues written by Greg Weisman